-Maria

Were you aware that Susan Markowitz spoke well of you and your mom in her book?  I actually loaned my copy to Marquette's mom, so I can't pull the exact quote, but it was something about how your mom was the only one to apologize to her and show her kindness during the trials.  And she hoped that you could make a good life for yourself now that you've served your time.

BTW, you don't have to censor yourself in this thread.  It has a language warning on it and we're not prudes anyway.

I'm sure I'll come up with some specific questions once I have a chance to process the fact that I'm actually talking to YOU.

I'm sure Cassavettes' comment about my being a "complicated dude" was likely based on a letter I sent in response to a letter he sent to me requesting a visit. I think I called him a shameless sycophant...which I didn't really mean (though I'm sure I meant it at the time). I was just frustrated at that point (I was in jail...).

So the alternative account. Yeah, I am finally in a place where I can blow the lid off of some things. Really, I was just waiting to get hauled into Court to testify in the JJ Hollywood trial. Now I am finally free and clear and can be perfectly candid. The real course of events is possibly more tragic than what has already been recounted (mostly false). Plus, there are so many things about growing up in Southern California the way we did that makes the film rendition of that life utterly absurd...even tame. More problematic still and a point touched on in Alpha Dog but not elaborated upon: who were our teachers? A look into the lives of our parents would be fascinating...that's to put it mildly. Personally, my family sucked. My Dad being the worst. The one lesson I learned from him: shut your f--ing mouth. About everything. Not cool. Anyway, gotta go catch lunch and a movie.

G

For anyone who's not sure what the heck we're talking about, this is Graham.  He's the young man whom Chris's character, "Keith" in Alpha Dog was based on.  So if you have any questions, he's your guy.

Graham, I'd love to hear more about your alternative account of the events.  BTW, I think you're a terrific writer.  I used to read your posts on MySpace a few years back.  You've got your own cool way with words and you're funny.

Tina's right, I did go to a screening in 2006 with Nick Cassavetes in attendance.  He said you were a complicated dude.

Hopefully we can talk a bit more when I'm back in October, and hopefully I'll come back here and find lots of interesting conversations!

Thanks for posting all the links, I'll be sure to check them out when I get a breather. We have a Twitter account too, but I don't know if you're interested in following what goes on around Chris Marquette. If so, you can find us here: www.twitter.com/cmarquettefans.

Just received your email. Thanks for responding. I was released in 2007, but haven't really been able to bring myself to wade through the fallout from the film until recently. I've been pretty busy trying to make a living and negotiate life after incarceration. Full disclosure, I am in the last stages of writing an alternative account of the events that inspired the film, hence my foray into the WWW. But I am very new with all of this. Remember, I was rolling with a top of the line pager before I was arrested...and when I was released, all of a sudden there were Iphones and all sorts of gadgets and social media...and a whole lot more. I'm lucky to have even successfully registered on this site. Anyway, I'm sure there are all sorts of questions that I might know the answers to regarding the film or the events that inspired it...and now that I am not facing prosecution...I am more than willing to set the record straight where I can.

Graham

p.s. My hair is curly, not straight. And I do shower...sometimes.

http://investigation.discovery.com/vide … f88020f612

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/6424341/h … y_version/